Return of Rider
by Rotashark
Summary: "You can change your name, and you can change your dreams. But there are some things, Rider, that you just can't change." Eugene is needed for a job, and a figure from his past has a certain amount of leverage.
1. Rayne & Rider

**A/n: Hi! Hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tangled**

Rayne walked hastily through the city streets, her dark cloak helping her blend into the night. Most of the city slept and it was silent. She turned onto another street on which a bustling bar poured light through its windows onto the cobblestones, and drunken shouts and loud music disturbed the night quiet. She slowed down as she approached and entered. The eighteen year old let the hood of her cloak fall, causing several men to stare hungrily. Taking in her surrounding, she immediately spotted her prey at the bar. And he had definitely spotted her. His face was flushed from drinking, he was more finely dressed than others, and perhaps in his late twenties. Probably some merchant. A smirk appeared when she came to stand next to him at the bar. She had a pretty good idea at what he was smirking. Was it her luscious lips, tanned skin, dark eyes and pretty face framed by soft locks? More likely it was the plunging neck line of her tight-fitting dress.

"Can I buy you a drink?" he asked.

"Actually," she replied, leaning closer, "I was hoping you'd buy a little something… more." She whispered in his ear seductively. "If you know what I mean."

He eyed her eagerly, "Anything you would like." She could smell the overpowering smell of whiskey on his breath, and with one last alluring smile she had him wrapped around her finger. With her hips swishing, she sauntered out of the bar; the man's footsteps close behind. Once they were out she took one more glance behind her to make sure he was following her, and continued walking down the street. Abruptly, she ducked into the alley, staying close to the wall, and drew her dragger from her sleeve. When the man came around the corner she surprised him and hit him in the back of the skull with the hilt of her dagger. He fell to the ground, out cold, and she commenced to search through his pockets. She quickly found his money bag laden with coins, and pried a few rings off his fingers. Most people would think he had passed out, drunk. And he would be too embarrassed to admit that he'd been mugged by a girl. She just left him there. Men were all the same to her. Scum like these were the reason she was out on the streets stealing for a living. Men would never change.  
She diverted her mind off the subject, and instead to the cool night air as she trekked to her hideout on the outskirts of town. It wasn't much; just an old house where a tree had fallen, killing the man that lived there. Only half of the building was destroyed; the rest was quite livable. The tree had crushed the door and the stairs, so the only entrance was through a window on the second story. She skillfully scaled the wall, and looked around the room. She wouldn't call it home, for she didn't need or want one. No, it was just a place where she spent the night and stowed her… income.

Her stomach growled, reminding her that the boy wasn't back yet, which was strange. Usually, he was back before she was. Not that she was concerned; he could handle himself well for a sixteen year old. But he was cocky, he had taken into carving that name he had made for himself from everywhere he stole. _Flynn Rider._ The most notorious thief in the town of Darret. Ha! All that boy stole was food and occasionally other supplies and some petty change. Rayne did the real work, but she was more discreet, which set her apart from her accomplice. Most bakers wouldn't notice a loaf of bread missing, but he had to boast that he was able to and carve his name. One day that could get them into trouble.

Just then, Flynn himself appeared in the window with bread and cheese.

"What took you so long?" She demanded.

"Store owner thought he was smart and put a new lock on the door. It just took me a little longer to figure out, that's all. And I carved my name even bigger than last time. Let's see how well he hides that." He smirked and crossed his arms confidently. Rayne wasn't impressed. Seeing her lack of interest, he changed the subject. "Why won't you let me steal in the daytime? It's no fun just picking locks and practically waltzing into stores. Where's the challenge?"

"The challenge?" she mocked. "In making sure you don't do anything stupid. If you steal something, you can be tracked back here. People will recognize your face. Wanted posters will spring up. I'll be linked to you. I want all of this to remain a secret. Being infamous only leads to the hangman's noose. That's why I do everything to keep our operation a secret."

* * *

"Flynn." The boy's groggy mind registered that _she_ was saying _his _name. She hardly ever used his name usually it was just 'kid' or 'you,' but when she said it like that… "Flynn wake up!" She hissed, and there went his illusion. He sat up and stared at Rayne.

"Today's the day. Remember?"

"Yes, the King is parading into town to celebrate his victory over Weslern."

"Right. And we are going to…?"

"Pay a visit to the Count's house while everyone's at the parade."  
"Correct." She smiled slyly at him. Grinning back, he leapt up and followed her.

That day the town had transformed. Everything had been cleaned until it shone, at least on the main street. You would almost think that Darret was a nice place to live, if you were only going into the main square.

Flynn and Rayne easily blended in with the crowd. Soon a boy came running through, shouting, "They're coming! They're coming!" People began to press around the square, and Flynn and Rayne stayed in the back. Flynn spotted the Count and Countess standing at the end of the square puffed up like peacocks, no doubt trying to win some money from the King. On the outskirts of Corona, it wasn't often the people were able to see the monarch, and Flynn arched his neck in curiosity, to see if the King was in sight yet.

"Ah come on." Rayne dragged Flynn away by the arm. The front of the Count's house faced the Square, but the back just led into an alleyway. It was there that Rayne stopped him. "Ok, so all the servants will be in the rooms facing the square, but the window of the Countess's rooms is right there." She gestured to the open window right above them. "Now, give me a boost."

Flynn complied; making a foothold with his hands. "How did you know the window was going to be open?"

"The maid always leaves it open." Came the cryptic reply as she reached for the window ledge and disappeared into the house. With nothing left to do but wait, Flynn leaned against the wall and whistled. A minute later, an angry maid's yell came from above, followed by Rayne jumping out of the window and breaking her fall with a roll. "Run!" she hissed. Flynn didn't need to be told twice. He took off, with Rayne following close behind. "This is far enough." Rayne gasped. They stopped to catch their breath. "What did you get?" he asked.

"I'll show you later. There's more to get out of the King's visit yet." They blended back into the crowd at the square. The King stood in front of the town giving a speech. Flynn tried to listen, but Rayne prodded him in the back. "Do your work." She whispered to him. Sighing, he went about pick pocketing the unaware crowd as they listened to the King's speech. When the King finished, the crowd began to thin, and Flynn lingered on the edge of the square, watching the king. The thief thought to himself that the King needed to be congratulated for the skill in which he shook off the greedy Count and Countess of Darret. Then he witnessed the King turn to a group of urchins and give them a copper piece each. Flynn smiled as he saw their faces light up. Then, Rayne materialized beside him. He turned to go in the direction of the hideout, but Rayne placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. "Look."

Flynn turned around to see the generous King place coins in an old blind beggar's cup. The beggar, moved with gratitude, fell at the King's feet, but the King just picked him up and gave him a pat on shoulder. The blind man, grinning from ear to ear, ducked back into his alleyway. Rayne followed after him, a cold hearted glint in her eyes. Flynn's heart sunk as he realized her intentions. "Let's go back. This is wrong Rayne."

"Oh, well that's rich coming from a thief. 'It's not right, it's not fair.' Well here's wake-up call for you, kid: life isn't fair. Don't you see the 10 gold crowns! It's worth it." And just like that she continued down the alleyway. Flynn did nothing to stop her. What could he do? He watched helplessly as she walked up to the blind man, dipped her hand into his cup to withdraw the gold, and walked away. The man, realizing what had happened, reached his hand into his cup, and felt nothing. He shook the cup, but heard nothing. His look of confusion went to one of despair, and his blind eyes stared straight ahead, expressive as any. The old man didn't shout or yell; just sat there, looking as if his world had ended. Flynn couldn't take it anymore, and turned away from the man's suffering.

* * *

Flynn had thought long and hard about it on the walk back, and made up his mind.

"Rayne that was wrong. I'm- I'm not working with you anymore. I'm leaving."

"What was that Flynn, dear? I couldn't hear you."

"I'm leaving." he said, firmer than he felt. His thoughts whirled. Where would he go?

"Oh, are you now?" She whirled around and crossed the room and stood very, _very_ close to him. He took a step back, and she took another forward, and kept forcing him back until he was in a corner. "Come on Flynn," she crooned. He couldn't help but notice her beauty, her closeness, and the curves of her body. "Flynn." She whispered in his ear, now pressing herself to him. "I know how you look at me. I know what you're thinking. Come on, be a man. Take me. Steal me, Flynn. You're good at that. I'm all yours."

"I-I-I don't-" Then she kissed him. She placed her hands on his chest, and they found their way to the buttons on his shirt. And then he was kissing her back. She ran her fingers through his hair, and he ran his down her body. He snapped out of it when she reached for his belt buckle. "No, I don't think I want this."  
"Relax, Flynn, it's only one night. You don't want to leave." She was unfastening his pants now. And he couldn't form the thought to tell her no, or a good reason. She was slipping off her dress.

"You want to be rich. I can help you. We will have our own island, and we'll rule it together." She knocked him to the ground, and was on top of him. "Just you and me, Flynn. Forever." How was she doing this to him? He hated her, for what she'd done, but another part of him wanted her so bad, and it seemed block out the other part. He shut off his mind as his body gave in to hers.

* * *

Flynn was walking through the streets at dusk looking for maybe a merchant to pickpocket. He wrapped his arms around him, as the chilly breeze made him shiver. Winter was defiantly here. The past few nights had been freezing, and soon it would start to snow. It was a week since he and Rayne had slept together, but they hadn't since. He was ashamed of it, but wasn't looking at going off on his own anytime soon. Until, perhaps by fate, he turned the corner and tripped over a body. Flynn turned the limp body over and was horrified to realize that it was the old blind man Rayne had stolen from. _No, not Rayne, us. I could've stopped it. I could've given him some money back. But I didn't, I just let her. And now I've condemned an innocent man to death. This is all my fault._

By now the sun had set had set, and Flynn went looking for a shovel to bury the man with. He carried the body into the forest. It was light, all skin and bones from malnutrition. He dug the grave, heavy with guilt, and buried the man. Then, feeling compelled to say some words over the man, he placed a hand over the grave and said, "May you _see _the light." It was the best he could think of.

Flynn realized that he didn't even know the man's name. He doubted anyone in town did. Was this how he would die? Alone, nobody caring? He probably didn't have a family, or any friends. A hanging would be preferable to this end. Not slowly withering away. Just a quick drop, and then it was over. Flynn Rider sat by the grave all night, just thinking. He returned to the hideout at dawn, resolved.

"Where were you?" demanded Rayne.

"That's none of your concern, and it won't be from now on. I'm leaving, for real this time."

"Now Flynn, come on, be serious." She sauntered forward trying the same trick as last time.

"No Rayne! Not this time, nor ever again!" He was beginning to see who she truly was. He shoved her away in disgust. After seeing the cold look in his eye, she backed away.

"Fine then, I see how it is. But now our loot is mine. Well… here." she tossed him a bag of silver that was just a small fraction of what they had. "Only because I'm generous." Flynn took it, bundled up his few belongings, and turned towards the window. "You'll regret leaving, Flynn Rider."  
"No, leaving is the only thing I won't regret." And with that he scaled down the wall.

He strolled into the morning market place and walked right into the tailor's shop. It was time for some new clothes. The tailor was happy to help him find some. When he was done, Flynn looked into the mirror on one of the walls. The clothes were nice, and he looked well in them. The boots were sturdy and would last a while. He walked over to the counter to pay for them.

"You have very good taste, sir. I haven't seen you around before, may I ask what your name is?" asked the tailor.

"Well, thank you. And the name's Flynn Rider." With that Flynn reached and stole all the money from the coin box and took off sprinting down the street. The store owner ran out, yelling: "RIDER!"

The baker heard it, and put together that this was the boy who had been stealing from him. He and his fellow merchants began their chase. Soon, the whole marketplace was in chaos. Flynn Rider soon made it to the woods, unscathed, and ready to shake the town, free of his old accomplice. And the town was left to spread the word of the notorious Flynn Rider.

**A/N: Hope you like it so far. I can promise that the plot will thicken in the next chapater. Please reveiw! Reviews are better than oreos!**

**~LC**


	2. Dangerous Deals

**A/N: Hope you enjoy! Rayne is pronouced like Rain. Thank's to everyone who reviewed!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tangled**

Lord Adder of Weslern observed his land from his balcony window. Only a mountain pass marked the end of his territory and the start of Corona. For almost ten years ago, the valley had been littered with bodies of the dying and the air had been filled with the clash of metal, clatter of horse hooves, and cries of agony. It was a standstill, a stalemate, neither side yielding. But when the Prince died in battle, King Gaspar ended the bloodshed and conceded land to Corona. His land, to be precise. Land that his cousin, the King, had never repaid him. He sat on his riches in his palace. The fool! He was not fit to be King. Moping away about his son for ten years; not even using his most valuable weapon in battle. What didn't he use it? Something about morals. So he let his country fall to ruin, made peace with Corona, the sworn enemy. Still the subjects liked him, the unedacated cattle! Enough was enough; it was time for Weslern to have a new king.

* * *

Captain Rathbane sat in the dark corner of an inn staring darkly at whatever the hell was in his mug. _Damn it all! _He thought. Until a few months ago, the captain had been in position to become commander of the army, and now look at him; he was given a notice, and in a month would no longer be under the King's employment. Twenty-two years of service to Corona, and what does he get in return? A notice that he had a month left before forced retirement. It was infuriating! It was all Flynn Rider's fault. The thief who had made him look like an incompetent idiot, brainwashed Maximus, the best warhorse, and- let's not forget- stolen from the kingdom, was now above him, and was on track to be the next prince. Just because the Lost Princess fell in love with him was not a good excuse to forgive the thief's past crimes. It didn't help that one of Flynn Rider's close friends, who was much younger and more inexperienced than Rathbane, had been made Commander of the Army. So the thief's friend was now in charge, he would be cast out into the streets without a job. Out with the old and in with the new. The captain slammed his mug down in frustration. The four hundred year reign of respectable Coronian Kings would _not _be tarnished by scum like Rider. He would _not _stand for it. Rathbane glanced at the clock; that woman would be here any minute. He continued to stare into his mug, when a voice startled him.

"Hello, _Captain_." He looked up to see the devil women standing in from of him. Out of courtesy, he stood to acknowledge her.

"Oh, don't bother with that; sit down." He sat down; hating to be told what to do by women- especially this one- when working with her was against his moral code. He didn't like her, but the situation called for desperate measures. "Make the needed arrangements for tomorrow night. Your knowledge of the palace has been a great help to me, Captain." Her voice was sweet and tantalizing, but he wasn't fooled.

"If you take anything except-" He started threatening before she cut him off.

"Oh, don't worry; there's no object in your little castle that could interest me. Besides, it would be too easy." Then, she drew a bag from underneath her cloak. "Here," she said. It landed with a thud on the table next to his mug. "For your help. You get the rest when it's complete."

"I don't want your money, witch."

"Well, then… consider it generosity."

"You're too kind, _milady_." he remarked sarcastically. The regarded each other fiercely for a moment before she stood and moved swiftly from the table, leaving him staring after her with disdain, and some other emotions he didn't want to admit to.

* * *

Lord Eugene Fitzherbert walked Princess Rapunzel to her chamber after most of the palace had gone to sleep. Just outside her door, he put his hands on either side of her against the wall, leaning in. "Goodnight Blondie," he whispered. In response, she threw her arms around his neck, and he returned her eager embrace.

"Goodnight."

She kissed him softly on the lips and opened the door to her rooms, turning her head back one last time to smile at him before closing it behind her. Eugene turned back down the hall, stuffing his hands in his pockets and whistling blissfully as he ambled back towards his own room. The walk was quick, and uplifting, not even the thunder that shook the walls was enough the bring him down, for his thoughts were filled with the prettiest girl in the world. With a smile on his lips where hers had been, he entered his room. It was dark inside, and the door shut by itself behind him. Before he could register what was happening, two strong pairs of hands seized him and tackled him to the ground, knocking the breath out of him. A gag was shoved into his mouth. He continued to struggle, but his captors picked him up by the shoulders and let his head bang against the stone floor. _Ouch, _was the last thing he though before spots covered his vision, and then the world went black.

* * *

Eugene woke up to a throbbing headache. _Ow! What did I…oh no! _Remembering the struggle the night before, his eyes snapped open. His heart rate quickened. He pushed himself off the wooden floor onto which he had been thrown, and jumped up to take stock of his surroundings. He was in a room, not a very big one. He could see light coming from under a door and from behind that curtained window. He froze. _Did he just hear something move?_

"Hello, Flynn," said an overly sweet, seductive, and eerily familiar voice from behind him. Surprised, he jumped and emitted a small yelp. The feminine figure went to the window and drew back the curtains, allowing the morning light to flood in and momentarily blind him.

"Ten years is a long time, Rider. But of course, word has it that you don't go by Flynn Rider anymore. Grown up and found yourself a princess, have you? Well," she laughed to herself, "we'll see about that."

"Rayne?" Eugene recoiled in disbelief, suspicion, and slight disgust.

She smirked. "Miss me, Flynn?"

Thinking fast, Eugene started shuffling towards the door. "Well, no, actually, but it has been _so_ very nice to see you again. I really do think I should be going and-" In one swift movement, Rayne had blocked the door and pulled her dagger to his throat.

"Nice try, Rider, but you can't talk your way out of this one."

Flynn stole a quick glance at the window, but Rayne caught him. "Don't even try it."

Conceding temporary defeat, Eugene didn't try to escape, mainly out of curiosity. "Have a seat, _Lord_ Eugene Fitzherbert," she mocked, gesturing towards a desk and chair in the corner of the room. Reluctantly, he seated himself. Rayne perched on the desk in front of him and crossed her legs. "I have a job for you."

"Sorry, no can do," he replied shaking his head with each work to emphasize the point.

"Well, I'm sure you'll find a way to do it somehow. That is, if you want to keep your precious Princess."

At the mention of Rapunzel anger welled up inside of him. "If you do anything to her I'll-"

In flash the dagger was back at his throat. "Oh don't worry. I don't have any plans to harm her. It's actually more of a question of if she'll still want to keep you."

"What are you talking about?" Eugene asked, confused. "Look, she knows I was thief, alright! But I've changed that and she knows it."

"Yes, so it seems. But you see, Flynn," she stood up and started circling his chair, " You can change your name, your habits, your wants, your dreams, and more, but there are some things that you just can't change. One of those, namely, is the past." Eugene sat there trying to make sense of her words when she called. "Blaze, sweetie, you can come in now." Intrigued by Rayne's usage of an endearing term, Eugene turned towards the door.

A young boy entered and stepped into the light and Eugene gasped. "Flynn, I'd like you to meet Blaze. He's nine." It was too much; the wicked grin on Rayne's face to the boy's accusing golden brown eyes, that were mirror images of his own.

* * *

Rapunzel, after finishing breakfast with the Queen, headed off to her lessons for the day. Etiquette proved to be rather boring, and she let her mind wander to the plans she and Eugene had made for that afternoon: a picnic, and a trip to the orphanage. She loved the children and couldn't wait to see them. After her lesson, she skipped out to the garden, which smelled amazing after all the rain the night before, and sat on the fountain where Eugene was usually met her. She waited, which she found strange. She got out of lessons at eleven like usual, and Eugene was always on time, if not early. Pascal found her there and climbed into the palm of her hand.

"Have you seen Eugene?" The chameleon shook his head in reply. Unable to stand the wait anymore, she went to go look for him in his room. On her way there, she came across Eugene's friend Cedric, the commander.

"Cedric, have you seen Eugene up this morning?" she asked.

"No, Princess," the answered, bowing low, "I haven't. He and I were going to go over military tactics earlier, but he never showed up."

"Oh, well, I suppose I'll have to scold him for that once I've found him. Thank you, Cedric."

"Always a pleasure, Princess." With another bow he continued on his way. She walked to Eugene's room and knocked on the door.

"Eugene?" When no one answered she rolled her eyes. _Probably still asleep. _She pushed open the door, but saw that his bed was made. Puzzled, she turned back towards the door and saw the first signs of something odd. There were muddy footprints on floor. Mud usually wasn't tracked up this far into the palace. There were two sets of them, going to and from the room. Rapunzel fallowed them down the hall when the ended at…_the wall?_ Excitement and fear filled her.

"This must be one of the secret passageways, Pascal!" She remembered learning about them. "But how do we get in?" Pascal's eyes went wide and searched until he found a knob in paneling. He pressed his tail to it; causing a crack to appear in the paneling. Curiously, Rapunzel slid it back revealing a dark passageway. Grabbing a torch, she followed it. A staircase led down to an earthy tunnel, much like the one she and Eugene used to escape the Snuggly Duckling several months before.

"Pascal, this explains the mud!" she said turning her head to face the chameleon on her shoulder. She bent down again to examine the tracks at her feet. There were streaks like something being dragged, or someone. "Eugene!" she cried. She ran to the end, but it turned out to be a dead end.  
"Come on, Pascal. Let's look for a way out!"

Pascal spotted it first and pointed up with his tail, and Rapunzel noticed that the ceiling was lower and made of wood. She saw the trap door Pascal was pointing to. Setting down her torch, she jumped and was able to get it to swing upwards and open. The smell of the stables hit her. Jumping again, she was just able to hang on to the ledge her feet kicking at air. She fell down, but was determined and jumped, reaching the ledge again.

"Help!" she cried.

"Rapunzel?" asked a concerned and alarmed voice from above, and two hands grabbed her by the wrist and hauled her out.

* * *

**A/N: So how'd you like it? Please Review, reviews are like Scar singing Be PREPAAAAAAARED on mountain of rock surrounded by hyenas: TOTALLY AWESOME! Special thanks to She Who Writes Words! **

**~LC**


	3. Rider Returns

**A/N: Moving along to chapter 3!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tangled, if I did I would be rich. **

Garrett sat huffing on the ground. He stared from the Princess, to the newly discovered trap door in disbelief. "What? How? Did you just? Really? I don't…" He trailed off. He was concern when he noticed Rapunzel quite pale. "Are you-"

Cutting him off she asked, "Have you seen Eugene today? At all?"

"Um, no. Why, haven't you?"

A small sob came from her mouth. "I've got to find him!" She stood up abruptly. Garrett stood up, but tripped trying to fallow her. Hastily standing up again he ran in front of her.

"Wait, tell me what's going on."

"Eugene's missing!" she half screamed at him, "I-I think someone's taken him." Behind them the crazy horse, who had been making a fuss all day, was now acting downright insane.

"Oh, shut up!" Garrett shouted at the horse, he was trying to listen to the Princess. He hated that horse.

"Max!" Rapunzel obviously loved the damn creature, but since the horse was the reason she came down to the stable so often, he didn't mind one bit. _Well maybe a little bit. _Now she was talking to it.

"Did you see what happened?" she asked anxiously. The horse nodded his head in reply. "Do you know who?" The horse shook his head and snorted. "Will you help me find him?" The horse snapped to position of attention horse style, and puffed his chest out. "Well come on. We've got to get him back!"

She turned to face him. "Garrett, tack him up for me." Garrett just stared not entirely grasping the situation. "Please?" she added sweetly as she could. Seeing his blank stares she turned towards the tack room, finally putting everything in place, Garrett understood.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" he spewed rapidly. She turned around to glare at him. "Whoa, whoa…" he added slowly seeing hardened determination in her eyes.

He tried appealing to logic. "You can't just…leave!" he said gesturing wildly with his hands. "You're a Princess and its other people's jobs to go chasing people."

"Other people," she said drawing herself up to her full height. "Like who?"

The chameleon, now perched on the top of her head was staring him down too. "Soldiers…me?"

"Garrett, you're 15! You're a stable boy! And you say I can't go? Don't tell me what I can't do! I'm going after Eugene."

"I'm sorry Princess, but uh…" He was so uncertain. Rapunzel was his best friend, he had told her all about horses, but she shouldn't just be running off. _Oh, I'm no good at this. _Then he came up with idea. "Wait! Just promise, not to go anywhere. Let me get by brother Cedric, he should know about this."

Rapunzel consented to staying put for a few more minutes. Garrett quickly located his brother courtyard and told him to come quick. Alarmed, Cedric ran to the stable to find Rapunzel clutching Maximus' mane. Cedric asked her again what she had seen. Cedric concerned for his friend, and something else that was bothering him, ran to the King to tell him about shocking events, and something else that troubled him even more.

* * *

Rapunzel detached herself from Garrett and fallowed Cedric at a distance, trying not to draw too much attention to herself. He entered the room where the King and Queen were having lunch, leaving the door partly opened behind him. Rapunzel inched forward to listen to what they were saying.

"Evidence shows that he was kidnapped, sir. But what troubles me even more is that they used the secret passageway, that only high ranking officers and your Majesties knew about. Less than a dozen, sir. I can't imagine any of them committing this treacherous act."

"Yes, that is troubling indeed Commander," she heard her father saying through the door.

"With your permission, your Majesty, I would like to put together a search party and go after the criminals myself, I would like to know who these people are, and I think we all want Sir Eugene back."

"Very good then Cedric, take a few men and track them down. Come back at before dark, I don't want my commander gone at this troubling time."

"As you wish your Majesty." Cedric's footsteps came closer to the door and before Rapunzel had a chance to hide, he opened it, revealing Rapunzel looking guilty just outside.

"Rapunzel?" the Queen asked. Rapunzel stared at her feet ashamed for eavesdropping. "Come here, darling." Rapunzel shuffled into the room.

"Iwannagoelpfingene" she mumbled.

"What was that darling?"

"I want to go help find Eugene." They stared at her.

Cedric spoke up, "Your Majesties, I have no objections to bringing the Princess along." Rapunzel turned smiling hopefully at him.

"But I do Comander," the Queen said coolly, crushing Rapunzel's hopes. "You are dismissed." Cedric bowed and left. Once he had gone, her mother's expression softened.

"Rapunzel come here," the Queen held out here arms, and Rapunzel ran to them. Stroking her daughter's hair she said firmly, "I would feel much better if you stayed here. I'm sure the commander will find him before the day is over and we can just pretend like this never happened." She pulled back a little. "Alright?" Rapunzel nodded, and the Queen wiped away the tears that had gathered in her daughter's eyes.

"What if they don't find him?" Rapunzel asked hesitantly.

"They will. Don't worry." The Queen assured her placing her hand on her cheek. With all her heart Rapunzel wanted to believe her.

"Why don't you join us for lunch? We only just started." Suggested the King. _Lunch._ She was supposed to be having a picnic with Eugene. Her heart ached with longing.

"No, thanks. I'll just go down to the kitchens and get something." She darted out of the room and walked numbly down the hall, having no intention of eating.

* * *

Garrett saddled Hercules, Cedric's stallion, and busied himself helping the four other soldiers prepare their horses, to go out on the search. Cedric came re entered and he fought for his brother's attention.

"Cedric!"

"Not, now Garr." His brother pushed him aside and talked to one of his men.

"Ced, I want to come with you."

"What? Garrett, no. You have a job to do here. And what about the Princess? She needs you." Garrett felt ashamed for wanting to go and leave Rapunzel here. Cedric turned away again, and Garrett began to protest. Cedric turned towards his brother.

He put a hand on his younger brother's shoulder. "Not this time Garrett. One day, I promise."

Garrett was not the only one upset about being left behind, Max was protesting as well. Cedric patted the horse, "Easy old boy. The Kingdom needs you here." He leaned in and in a stage whisper that Garrett could hear, whispered, "And keep an eye on the kid, makes sure he doesn't slack off." Garrett could swear the horse was laughing at him. Cedric called to his troops and together they mounted and rode out of the palace, Garrett staring after them, wishing nothing more than to be with them.

* * *

Eugene paced the room. Rayne had stepped out with the boy. The boy, his son. He was still gripped with shock. What would he do? What about Rapunzel?

He stopped pacing and slumped, defeated against the wall. _Rapunzel. Oh, Rapunzel, I'm so sorry. _And though he hated to admit it, Rayne was right. He couldn't change what he had done. He never did deserve Rapunzel, now more than ever.

Who was he kidding? Lord Fitzherbert? He was Flynn Rider, the scum of a wanted thief and nothing more. Untrustworthy, immoral, and undeserving of love. He could never go back to the Princess. Happy endings didn't have thieves in them. He would go back to living without her, however unbearable it was, he couldn't even imagine it. And she would marry a prince, that's was princesses did. He couldn't picture her with anyone else, he didn't want to. Just the thought of her not wanting him anymore almost ripped at his chest. He could never go back. Why put her through the pain of the truth? He loved her, but he would only hurt her if he ever saw her again.

Rayne re-entered the room and he stood up. "Well? Have you made your decision. Or shall I make an announcement to the kingdom?"

"I accept the job."

**"Excellent." Rayne walked out of the room, and Flynn Rider fallowed her, emotionless to face his fate, leaving Eugene Fitzherbert in the room, broken and tormented.**

* * *

**A/N: Please review! Reviews are like magical glowing hair, you freak out when you see them.**

**~LC**


	4. Runway Rapunzel

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, but I'll be posting the 5th chapter later today. Thanks to all the reviewers! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tangled. :(**

* * *

Rapunzel was curled up with her atlas in the hay loft of the stables. Usually the book was a comfort, and something she loved to look at, but today it only brought despair. Garrett was tossing hay down from the loft, he hadn't seen her yet and that was fine, she wasn't ready to talk to anyone. She hugged her knees and let her head fall.

"Are you alright?" Garrett had discovered her and stood over her. She turned her head sideways peering at him through her hair. She sat up, brushing the hair out of her face.

He sat down next to her, "Ced'll find him." His words were of no comfort.

"But what if he doesn't!" she yelled at him. "Look!" She opened her book to a page showing the kingdom. "He could be anywhere!" She turned the page, "They could've taken him to the south to Malaga or Bassalt, or west to Denath, or North to Weslern, or on ship to places even farther away! Don't you understand?" She gestured to each place on the map, becoming more hysterical with each one and on the verge of tears. But Garrett took her by surprised and bear hugged her. She tensed up, and then sighed and gave a small sad laugh. Garrett pulled away. "Better?" Rapunzel nodded. She smiled at Garrett.

Garrett got a mischievous look in his eye. He looked around to make sure they were the only ones in the stable.

"You want to see something?" He had almost forgotten until now, what he had made, and had been waiting to tell Rapunzel about it.

"What?" She mumbled with a small sniffle. He had pictured her having her more enthusiasm and curiosity, but still. Jumping up, he grabbed a rafter and swung his leg over it. He grabbed the rope he had coiled up earlier and threw it down. The rope reached down past the loft and ended about 7 feet above the ground. He slid down it, till he was level with the loft and swung to the platform and pulled the rope up. Rapunzel ran to stand beside him. She held up the round wooden seat he had tied onto it.

"Did you do all this?" She asked, sounding surprised.

"Well, yeah. Do you want to try it out?"

"It's brilliant!" Before Garrett could stop her, she placed one of her feet on the seat and jumped out of the loft, swinging above the horses' heads, who whinnied in surprise at her. She laughed. Max was laughing too below her. Garrett had climbed down to feed the horses. And smiled at Rapunzel above him. When he was done he climbed back up and jumped on the rope above from where Rapunzel was holding it.

Rapunzel felt like she was flying, the last time she had felt that was when she was leaving her tower with…Eugene. Her happiness suddenly faded. She heard a clattering of hoof beats in the courtyard, and looking out the window, she was shocked to see that the sun had almost set.

She slid down the length of the rope and landed right at Cedric's feet as he opened the door. He stepped back in surprise, and raised an eyebrow at his younger brother who was still hanging on the rope above.

Cedric looked back at Rapunzel, but he couldn't bring himself meet her pleading, green eyes. Instead he looked at stone floor.

"I'm sorry your majesty." Tears he didn't see welled up in her eyes. "We tried everything, but the rain washed away any tracks. We'll try again tomorrow." He bowed to her, but she ran past him and out into the courtyard not believing him. She started running towards the gate, but she felt a hand on her on her arm that stopped her.

"No, Rapunzel. It's bad enough to have one person missing. We don't need you to leave too."

"Garrett," she whispered, "I have too." He looked at her uncomprehending. She sighed; it was time for plan B. "Meet in the stables at 1:30."

She was using her princess tone, he hated when she did that, because it was an order that he couldn't get out of. Still…

"But-"

He shut up when she turned to give him the determined Rapunzel glare, he gulped. "I'll be there."

"Could you bring some of your extra clothes too?"

"Yes Princess. But Fritz is on duty tonight, we won't be able to get around him."

"I'll come up with something. I'll see you tonight."

* * *

"So are you going to tell me what this job is?"

"No, I don't think so, not yet anyways."

They were riding one by one along on an almost forgotten forest path. When the road widened, Rayne had Rapier and Ole position themselves on either side of Flynn, apparently, she still wasn't taking any chances. Blaze road next to his mother on his dun pony, and Rayne led the way on her brown stallion.

The forest was still, the leaves had fallen, giving it a dull appearance. Much different from when he and Rapunzel had traveled in it last spring, when everything was green and vibrant. Now, the last of the leaves just barely clung to the braches, giving the forest the feel of a slumbering dangerous animal.

After hours of ridding north, Flynn was getting bored. He turned to Rapier who was riding beside him. The man was tall and lean, and lethal looking, with dark eyes like a snake. Remembering the last time he was with ruffians, Flynn was prompted to ask, Rapier a question, mainly for Flynn's own amusement.

"So…what's your dream?"

"What?" asked the man confused.

"You, know. Your dream?"

The man looked with his dark eyes, but they no longer seemed so snake-like, there was pain in them. But before Flynn could examine any further, Rapier turned his eyes back to the road. Shrugging it off, Flynn turned to his right to talk to Ole.

"Do you have a dream?"

But Ole just looked down at his hands and didn't respond.

"Hey Rayne! What's _your_-"

"Enough with this nonsense! Rider, shut-up!" she snapped.

Blaze turned around to look at Flynn, but Rayne forced her son to turn around.

They traveled all day and it wasn't until an hour after dark that they stopped. Ole built a raging fire that was welcomed by all, who hadn't realized how cold they'd been until that moment. Rapier had first watch, which meant he was in charge of making sure he didn't escape. Not like Flynn had any plans to, he was trapped.

One by one, Ole and Rayne fell asleep. Rapier sat against the trunk of a tree whittling away at sticks. Across from the fire, Flynn could see the boy staring intently into the fire. Throughout the day Flynn had been stealing glances at his son. Blaze had his eyes, that was apparent, but when you looked closer you also saw that he had his nose and eyebrows as well. Rayne was there too, though. His hair was almost black, and he had her smaller ears and a rounder chin.

The boy had been looking at him too. Throughout the day Flynn would catch him starring, and the boy would look away confused for a moment before going back to his accusing look. Flynn looked at the boy now, and wasn't surprised to see him looking back. This time, it was Flynn who looked away confused. Having a son was hard getting used to. Finally, he laid down on the grass, still feeling the boy's eyes on him, and closed his own. Rapunzel appeared in his mind. He had tried not to think about her that day. He _tried_ not to think about what she doing and how worried she must be. The mental image upset was enough to almost turn around and go galloping back to her. But then she would have to hear the truth, and that would only hurt her more. It was better this way.

* * *

"Garrett!" He jumped when someone from behind hissed his name.

"Sorry. It's just me." Rapunzel appeared from the shadows.

"What are you going to do about Fritz?"

"Just stay here, I got it." She slipped inside the stable, Garrett head some talking and then a thud.

"Uh, Garrett a little help here!"

"What did you do…" his question died in his throat as he took in the scene. Fritz was flat on the floor and next to him was a half eaten cupcake.

"You-you-you just..."

"I know! He'll wake up in the morning." she sounded horrified and sorry about what she'd done. "But let's hurry." Together they moved the stable worker to a corner, out of sight.

"Do you have the clothes I asked for?" Rapunzel asked. Garrett nodded and reluctantly handed two pairs of his old trousers, and two shirts. She stood there as if waiting for him to do something, the relizing that she wanted him to turn around so she could change, is face turn red as quick as Pascal could, and he turned around.

"I'll-uh, just go saddle Max for you." And he stalked off to find the warhorse's tack. As he prepped the horse he became lost in thought. _Why am I letting her do this? Because she's a Princess and can demand stuff like that. But what about the Queen and King? If they found out he could lose his job, Cedric could lose his, and then where would they be? But worst of all he could lose his chances of becoming a knight. _

"Hey," he pulled Max's head down so he could look him straight in the eye. "Take care of the Princess."

The horse snorted as if to say 'of course.' Rapunzel came into Max's stall with the chameleon on her shoulder and slipped some provisions into the saddlebags. He had to notice that his clothes looked good on her. He was just as skinny as she but taller, hence the reason he'd given her the short, old ones. She wore her own pair of nice leather boots.

He tried one last time, "Rapunzel you don't have to do this. It's dangerous! What if you die? I don't want my friend to die."

"I'm already dying a little every hour he's not here, Garrett, that's why I have to do this."

He looked at her sadly, his eyes begging her not to go. So in answer to why he was letting her do this, it was because she was his best friend.

"Well, bye Gare." She said throwing her arms around him, "Thanks for everything." She kissed him briefly on the cheek. Garrett, stunned, helped her onto the horse.

"Wait, what about the two men at the gatehouse."

"Oh don't worry, they wanted cupcakes too." And with that she rode out of the stables. He ran out just in time to see her ride out of the gate and into the night.

To the empty courtyard he whispered, "Goodbye, Rapunzel."

* * *

**A/N: Please review and tell me what you think so far. Reviews are like the stickers I got when I was little after I got a shot, they always made my day awesome. I'm always open to suggestions, and feel free to point out my mistakes. **

**RADOM NOTE: I'm going to have the best birthday ever, because it's the same day Tangled comes out on DVD.**

**And as always special thanks to She Who Writes Words for being ama-ZING!**

**~LC**


	5. Palace Plight

**A/N: Enjoy! Thanks to everyone who reviewed**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Tangled, I wouldn't be writting fanfiction now would I?**"Wake up!" someone hissed very close to his ear.

* * *

"Ah!" he yelped, jumping up. He heard Ole laughing at him. Rayne looked amused.

"It's time for you to know your job."

"Let me guess, we're stealing something. But why do you need me?"

"We're stealing the Lighting Staff." She said bluntly.

"What?" Flynn was shocked, "You mean _the _Lightning Staff?"

"Precisely." She said coolly.

Flynn looked at the other two to see how they felt about this; they looked shocked as well, probably because this was the first time they'd heard of as well.

"What are you going to do with it?"

"Whatever I want, do you know how much people would pay for that? It's legendary, has great power, very useful don't you think?"

"I won't do it."

"Don't you remember our deal Flynn? Do you want Corona to know what've you done? They're better off believing Eugene Fitzherbert is dead! You'll be a hero. Or I tell them and you're the scum from the streets."

Why did she have to be so right? Either way he would lose Rapunzel, her believing he was dead or something of the sort was the best way.

"And besides Flynn, who's to say that Weslern should have it, what if Corona goes to war against, what if they use against Corona's army, what about the Commander, the King, or any of those men, would you steal it to protect them?"

Yes, he would steal it to protect his friends and the King who had pardoned him and accepted, and shone him kindness. He hated Rayne for being right.

"Let's get started then."

* * *

Rapunzel rode through the night. Max was able to fallow the scent of Eugene and the kidnappers. It was late morning when she came across the cottage. Jumping down from the horse she grabbed her sword. It felt awkward and heavy in her hands, and she was beginning to wish she'd brought her frying pan instead.

The horse started to fallow her. "Stay, here Max. Run for help if anything happens." Max, not being able to refuse a direct order, surveyed the perimeter, while Rapunzel cautiously tried the door. Locked. She looked around for another entry. The shutters on the window were closed, and there was only one other door, but that was locked as well.

Pascal, however, found a hole that he was just big enough for him to squeeze through. Rapunzel waited for to unlock the door. Slowly the door creaked open. Rapunzel couldn't help but gasp. She could've just as well have walked into one of the rooms at the palace. The main room had exquisite trappings. There were richly colored rugs from Malaga, furniture carved of black pine of Denath; glass vases from the island of Muranette of Corona, above the fireplace hung two swords of the finest Weslern make, and rare ivory ornaments, from Bassalt as well.

Remembering the danger she scanned the room for anyone. Cautiously she crept up the stairs holding the sword out in front of her, Pascal scouted ahead, blending in with the wood. She looked into the first room. It was just a plain office that contrasted the downstairs. She continued onto the two bedrooms, the first matched the room downstairs, but the second was just as plain as the office. She looked around this one first; it had just an ordinary bed and a dresser with some clutter on it. Looking for clues, she went towards the dresser.

Pascal climbed on top of it knocking things to the floor. Rapunzel bent to pick up…_toy knights? _She looked at them puzzled. Opening the first drawer she found only clothes—small boy clothes. The second one had more clothes, the third was contained books. She peered at some of the titles. Some were about animals, others were adventure books, and a few on battle strategy. Towards the bottom she found a thinner worn looking one. Curious, she flipped through it. _A sketch pad!_ Guiltily, she kept the book out of curiosity, slipping it into her satchel, silently promising to return it to the owner. She tried the fourth drawer and was heavier than the one with the books. Finally inching it open, she found the child's treasure chest. It was filled with smooth pebbles, sea shells, a blue jay's feather, buttons, rocks, a harmonica, scraps of metal, and so many other odds and ends. Smiling, she shut it, but then frowned. What was a child doing here?

She peered into the other room, there was nothing interesting. She gathered that it was a women's from the vanity mirror, to the jewels she found laying about. What she did find strange is that the clothes were ordinary peasant's clothes, some were men's, but there were also some very fine dresses as well.

She moved onto the office, she tried the top drawer, but it was locked. Two had just quills, but another had a few maps in it, she took those, and the last had a list in it. She read it, it was just names of establishment, some were bars, and others were inns. She recognized the Snuggly Duckling. She stuffed it into the satchel as well, and ran downstairs with the sudden urge to move on. Finding nothing interesting downstairs, she went outside to where Max was waiting. Pascal climbed onto her shoulder, and Rapunzel mounted Max, they passed an empty stable, but finding nothing interesting the continued down the road. Rapunzel pulled out one of the maps, this road was only on one, and it had been marked there in pencil, the other two said that it did not exist. She let the reigns go slack; Max knew where they were going by the scent anyway.

Reveling her new discoveries, she pulled out the sketchpad. She felt bad for prying into it, but couldn't help herself. The drawings weren't half bad, he was a good artist. Most were of horses. The first one was of a pony with a dark spot, that looked like an eye patch. Scribbled under it was _Pirate. _Rapunzel smiled at how fitting the name was. The other drawing were of a pretty bay mare, called Princess, a chestnut, heavy hoof mare, called Star (Rapunzel guessed because of the marking on her forehead). And black and brown stallions called Shadow and Fury.

She admired each of the drawings of the horses, until she came to the rough sketches of people. The first few were of a woman, perhaps his mother? She stared at the picture; she was trying to find more about the women of the cottage. Who was she? She was elegant and regal looking, with sharp features, and more ladylike than Rapunzel could ever imagine herself. She turned the page, there were too men. At first she wondered if they were related, or if one was his father. But one was too old, and the other couldn't be much older than her. Carefully, she slipped the book back into her satchel. She wanted to meet this boy.

* * *

At sunset, Rapunzel, Max and Pascal came across the camp. Max stopped.

"What's that Max? They were here. Good boy!" she hugged him around the neck. "We should—" Max turned to her showing how tired he was. "You're right, it won't if we kill ourselves."

Rapunzel built a fire, allowing Max to rest. See pulled a well deserved apple out of the saddle bags and fed it to Max and got a hunk of bread for herself and Pascal. She looked at her sword, and figured she'd better practice with it. She started swinging it around. Max was appalled at her technique. His short rest was enough to re-energize him, so he pulled two large sticks off a tree, throwing one at Rapunzel's feet, and keeping one in his own mouth.

Catching on, Rapunzel picked it up, and held it out in front of her like a sword. She faced him squarely; he shook his head, and motioned for her to turn her body. She did, and then he showed the basics: how to attack, block, feint, and parry. They fought over and over again, and he consistently unarmed her. She was determined though, by the end of the session, they were going to minutes at a time before she knocked the stick out of her hand. She was a quick learner and had a natural talent, Maximus suspected that she had inherited the gift from her father. Of course, learning from the best swordfighter helped too. There was still a lot for her to learn though, she had a good defense, but she hadn't managed to break the horse's yet. Rapunzel went to bed, expecting to wake up with several bruises in the morning.

* * *

Garrett couldn't sleep, he felt terribly guilty, and worried. No one had suspected him help the Princess leave, except for Cedric, but Cedric was to busy with other things right now. At first everyone though Rapunzel was just hiding, like she had been yesterday, but when Max was missing too, they realized what had happened. Poor Fritz, he was the best stable worker, and the King had taken it out on him. Later, Fritz was apologized to, but he had to endure the King's anger, which was bad.

Another search party had been sent out with orders to find the Princess or not come back. He would gladly go with them than stay behind; the mood in the palace was tense. There were no more jokes or laughter in the courtyard this evening like there usually was, and if there was, it was quickly cut off.

He closed his eyes, and tried one more time to go to sleep. Instead, he just heard the snores and breathing of the other 5 stable boys he bunked with in the rooms behind the stables. He heard footsteps coming of the stairs, and he feigned sleep.

"Garrett, come with me. We need to talk." It was Cedric. _Oh no! He knows._

Garrett threw on his shoes and fallowed Cedric downstairs to the common room. He gulped, dreading the conversation.

"Garrett," his brother put his hand on his should, looking down at him, straight in the eye, "If you know anything about the Princess running away, I need you to tell me now. She trusted you."

Garrett looked down at his feet, "I thought she trusted me too."

This lie seemed to satisfy his brother. "Then I'm sorry. Also I'm leaving tomorrow, for awhile. The King has asked me to go to Weslern and see if there's anything we need to worry about, we'll be keeping a look out for the Princess and Eugene as well. I need you to make sure my pay gets to Mum every week. And I want you to take time to go help her with Adalyn. Can you do that for me?" he nodded.

"I'll see you when I get back." With the slamming of the door Cedric was gone again, leaving Garrett wondering when he'd see him again.

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**A/N: You know what I'm going to ask right? Please review? Reviews are like the score to How to Train Your Dragon: EPIC!**

**Random: I watched How To Train Your Dragon for the 1st time this weekend...and the 2nd time. It's _almost_ my new favorite movie. Don't worry Tangled is still in 1st...for now.**

**Double RANDOM: You can vote on the topic you want me to write about next on my profile page**

**You all are TOTALLY AWESOME**

**~LC**


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